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Friday, July 20, 2007
10 public works officials, major charged
CEBU CITY -- The P15 million tranche of the contract price for surveillance cameras for the Asean summit was released based on documents signed by suspended officials and an unauthorized police officer.
That, according to Crisologo Saavedra, the businessman whose complaint led to the earlier suspension of officials linked to the alleged overpriced purchase of decorative lamps.
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Saavedra filed before the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas Thursday a criminal and administrative complaint against at least 10 Department of Public Works and Highways official, a businessman, and a police officer.
Saavedra filed the complaint for the release of P15 million despite an agreement by government officials to freeze the funds pending the result of an Ombudsman investigation on the surveillance cameras deal. The surveillance cameras deal cost P83 million. The 15 million represented the second payment. A third payment is still being processed.
Saavedra also asked the Ombudsman to immediately place the government officials on preventive suspension.
Some of those impleaded in the complaint are already under suspension since March 29 for their alleged involvement in another Asean Summit-related investigation - the multimillion-peso lamppost purchases.
But, according to Saavedra, the same officials defied their suspension by signing on April 4 a document he described as a “final acceptance certificate” that resulted in the release of the money.
Saavedra, a government contractor, said he won the bidding for the supply of surveillance cameras for the recent Asean summit in Cebu. He said the contract was given to Triton, one of the firms disqualified during the pre-qualification stage, because he wouldn’t agree to pay off government officials.
Triton, he alleged, delivered inferior equipment at hiked prices.
Named in the complaint are engineer Jerome dela Rosa, the incumbent acting DPWH director who replaced the suspended Roberto Lala, and engineer Jorge Sebastian, the acting assistant director.
Also impleaded are Lala, suspended assistant directors Marlina Alvizo and Pureza Fernandez, engineer Rosario Calves, Augustus Zafra, Elfyn Banquil, Rosalina Alqueza and Teresa Bernido, all of DPWH.
Saavedra also included Silverio “Sonny” Tacardon, representing Triton and Chief Insp. Gerry Leopoldo.
Leopoldo, who is assigned to the PNP Regional Office 7’s Communication Electronics (Commel) Section, signed the acceptance certificate for the surveillance cameras in behalf of PRO 7 Chief Silverio Alarcio Jr.
The certificate was what Triton supposedly needed in claming its second billing.
But Alarcio had previously committed to not signing the document at least until the anti-graft investigation on the surveillance cameras was finished.
The investigation is anything but finished. The only thing established, thus far, is that an independent expert has confirmed that the supplied items is not optimal for the job intended and that it is “outrageously overpriced” - charging for civil works when every component involved is plug-and-play and readied software.
Leopoldo, whose certification was also instrumental in the first disbursement of P63 million sometime in February, wasn’t even authorized to sign the document in behalf of the regional police chief.
Alarcio, in a letter to the DPWH as early on November 21, 2006, designated Senior Superintendent Lani-o Nerez, the deputy of the security task force for the summit, to represent the police.
Also impleaded are members of the bids and awards committee (BAC) that handled the contract. They are yet to be identified.
Members of the Board of Directors of the private contractor - Triton Communications Corp. – were also included in the complaint.
A conference at the anti-graft office last July 6 confirmed the P15 million release to Triton. The amount represented the government’s second payment for the P83 million worth of surveillance cameras for use during the Asean Summit.
The same conference revealed a scheduled third release that could still be stopped, as the disbursement papers for it aren’t yet in order. But the amount is much lower, at a little over P6 million.
In his complaint, Saavedra said the release of the P15 million to Triton wouldn’t have been possible had it not been for the impleaded officials.
Former regional director Lala, he added, even signed the voucher for it the day before his successor reported for work on April 4. (KNR of Sun.Star Cebu)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro. (July 20, 2007 issue)
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